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14- and 16-Inch MacBook Pros Reportedly Not Getting OLED Displays Until 2026

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Apple's 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models will not offer OLED display technology until 2026, display analyst Ross Young today reaffirmed.

Oled-MackBook-Pros-23.jpg

In a tweet, Young shared a new Reuters report detailing Samsung Display's $3.1 billion investment in OLED production in Asan, South Korea and said that the facilities will be used to make OLED displays for 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models from 2026.

Last month, Young said that the MacBook Pro is unlikely to adopt an OLED display until 2026, when Apple's supply chain is expected to have sufficient notebook-optimized OLED display production capacity. Until then, Young said suppliers will be focused on OLED displays for tablets, such as the iPad Pro.

In the same report, Young explained that the first OLED Mac is expected to be a MacBook Air with a slightly smaller, 13.4-inch display. Simultaneously, it was reported that Samsung Display has started development of OLED displays that will be used for this future MacBook Air model.

In addition to the 2026 time frame, the information suggests that despite Apple's wish to get away from Samsung displays and switch to its own custom MicroLED technology, Samsung Display will have an omnipresent role in supplying OLED panels for Apple's next-generation devices – contributing to the 11.1-inch iPad Pro, 13.4-inch MacBook Air, and 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro.

Article Link: 14- and 16-Inch MacBook Pros Reportedly Not Getting OLED Displays Until 2026
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2023/04/04/macbook-pro-not-getting-oled-until-2026/
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Honestly the MicroLEDs are just fine IMO. The current MBP looks amazing.

Sure OLEDs are great for battery but as someone who has an OLED TV, believe me, larger OLEDs still have lots of kinks to be worked out.

EDIT: I got my terminology mixed up. The current lineup uses Mini-LED. Thanks to those that corrected me.
 
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Can someone explain why anyone would want an OLED display on a computer?

Computer displays tend to be on for HOURS at a time, often displaying the same data in the same place on the screen for those hours. Like in my case I always have my messenger on the upper left and a terminal window on my linux server on the bottom left. These things would get burned into an OLED display.

Not to mention the menu bar with the Apple logo in the corner. That will get burned in very quick and you'll see it any time you full screen anything.

It just totally seems like the wrong technology for the job.
 
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I am very dubious that OLED will debut on the Air.

OLED came to the top-of-the-line iPad Pro before the rest of the line; same with the premium iPhone X.

They're expensive parts that will be in short supply for years. There's room in the profit margin of the high end, not so much on the affordable models.

I wouldn't even be surprised if they were only available on the 16" or some theoretical "Macbook Ultra" for a year or two before it hit the Airs.
 
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zorinlynx said:
Can someone explain why anyone would want an OLED display on a computer?

Computer displays tend to be on for HOURS at a time, often displaying the same data in the same place on the screen for those hours. Like in my case I always have my messenger on the upper left and a terminal window on my linux server on the bottom left. These things would get burned into an OLED display.

Not to mention the menu bar with the Apple logo in the corner. That will get burned in very quick and you'll see it any time you full screen anything.

It just totally seems like the wrong technology for the job.
Click to expand...

There is a price war brewing with BOE in the market and expanding rapidly. Foldables are only possible with OLED.
 
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Good oled has burn inc mini led is fine and with the app vivid you get full brightness which you couldn’t get with OLED
 
MayaUser said:
18" is not an LAPtop anymore :)
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Not as crazy as it sounds. If Apple made a new laptop with the same footprint as the old 17" Powerbook and the new edge-to-edge screens, they could probably fit an 18.5" screen in one.

I carried around one of those "cafeteria tray" Macs for a couple years. Not for me in retrospect, but I get the appeal.
 
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I’m still very confused about the direction Apple is going with their display technology. There is so much discussion around micro-LED, is that technology so far off that it’s beyond 2026? I love my OLED TVs - incredible color. I don’t worry about burn in so much, but I know that will be mentioned on every post.

If Macrumors has not done an article about display technology and roadmaps, they should. From various articles, it almost seems like some technologies are being adopted in a swap with other existing products -> ie. Watch going from oled to micro led.
Laptop Mini led going to oled.
 
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c84216 said:
Honestly the MicroLEDs are just fine IMO. The current MBP looks amazing.

Sure OLEDs are great for battery but as someone who has an OLED TV, believe me, larger OLEDs still have lots of kinks to be worked out.
Click to expand...
Isn’t the current lineup using mini LED, not micro?
 
c84216 said:
Honestly the MicroLEDs are just fine IMO. The current MBP looks amazing.

Sure OLEDs are great for battery but as someone who has an OLED TV, believe me, larger OLEDs still have lots of kinks to be worked out.
Click to expand...

There is no µLED on the current models. They feature mini-LED. You can't compare µLED and mini-LED. µLED is self-emitting, just like OLED. While mini-LED is just like all previous generations of LED LCD, just with smaller dimming zones.

µLED is basically the best of both worlds, combing the benefits of LED and OLED.
 
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zorinlynx said:
Can someone explain why anyone would want an OLED display on a computer?

Computer displays tend to be on for HOURS at a time, often displaying the same data in the same place on the screen for those hours. Like in my case I always have my messenger on the upper left and a terminal window on my linux server on the bottom left. These things would get burned into an OLED display.

Not to mention the menu bar with the Apple logo in the corner. That will get burned in very quick and you'll see it any time you full screen anything.

It just totally seems like the wrong technology for the job.
Click to expand...

I imagine the reason it’s taking so long is for the reasons you’ve described. It will probably be much better technology in a few years time with less chance of burn in.
 
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Eric_WVGG said:
Not as crazy as it sounds. If Apple made a new laptop with the same footprint as the old 17" Powerbook and the new edge-to-edge screens, they could probably fit an 18.5" screen in one.

I carried around one of those "cafeteria tray" Macs for a couple years. Not for me in retrospect, but I get the appeal.
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it is...just test the current 16" :)) 18" is already going with the gaming laptops that are more desktop with some travel capabilities ..but its not lap-able at all an 18"
24" iMac is as good for traveling as the 18" mac, just plug it in :D
We talk about something that is dead in the water...the 16" is in Apple eyes the compromised between the 15" and the old 17"
 
If the Macbook Pro panels continue to have terribly slow pixel response time despite ProMotion, it's going to be weird with the vastly faster pixel response time on the OLED Macbook Air
 
RamGuy said:
There is no µLED on the current models. They feature mini-LED. You can't compare µLED and mini-LED. µLED is self-emitting, just like OLED. While mini-LED is just like all previous generations of LED LCD, just with smaller dimming zones.

µLED is basically the best of both worlds, combing the benefits of LED and OLED.
Click to expand...
Ah dangit. Got my terminology mixed up. Thank you.
 
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